While you were sleeping, we compiled the biggest stories of the day in one place. Each story has a quick and easy summary, so you're prepared for whatever the day brings. Just click on the links if you want to know more!
1. Tax Day is here
Today is Tax Day — the federal deadline for individual tax filing and payments. The IRS will receive tens of millions of last-minute filings electronically and through paper forms.
Nina Tross at the National Society of Tax Professionals says if people haven’t filed their taxes by now, “they’re better off filing an extension.”
Tross adds that filing an extension has “zero effect” as long as filers have paid their income taxes by Tax Day. Tross warns that rushing a return to meet the deadline only to have to amend it later is likely to draw a second look by the IRS.
2. Russian strikes kill at least 6 in Lviv
Ukrainian officials say Russian missiles hit the western city of Lviv, killing at least six people.
The attack Monday came as Moscow’s troops step up strikes on infrastructure in preparation for an all-out assault on the east.
The regional governor said emergency teams were putting out fires caused by the strikes.
3. Unemployment rate drops to record low in Palm Beach County
New figures released Friday show that Palm Beach County's unemployment rate has reached a record low, according to CareerSource.
Palm Beach County’s unemployment rate for March dropped to 2.6% compared to 4.9% a year ago.
For nine consecutive months, there are more job openings than unemployed people in Palm Beach County — 40,134 job openings compared to 19,235 unemployed people in March.
4. How Florida lawmakers contributed to affordable housing crisis
Some of the affordable housing crisis in Florida can be directed at raids on a state trust fund. Called the Sadowski Fund, it became Florida law back in 1992 as a dedicated annual revenue source to keep affordable housing projects thriving across the state.
Funded through stamp tax fees from real estate deals, the Sadowski includes two trust funds. Seventy percent of the money in the Sadowski fund goes to local housing assistance known as SHIP and the other 30% goes into a state housing trust fund known as SAIL.
SHIP helps homeowners with downpayment, repairs or preservation and rental assistance while SAIL goes to developers to help build more affordable housing.
But during the housing boom of 2002, under Gov. Jeb Bush, the Legislature started raiding the trust fund for other projects. Many of those projects had nothing to do with housing at all, but raids of the Sadowski fund kept going
5. Woman found shot dead outside home in Old Northwood Historic District
An investigation is underway after a woman was found dead outside a house in the Old Northwood Historic District.
Officer Mike Jackles said 12 people were in and around the house when the shooting occurred.
However the people who say they were inside the home when it happened say the woman was shot outside. Miguel Castanon says it was his brother's girlfriend that was shot and killed, and she was 18 years old.
Today's Forecast
Scattered thunderstorms this afternoon ahead of cold front
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On This Day In History
On April 18, 1906, at 5:13 a.m., an earthquake estimated at close to 8.0 on the Richter scale strikes San Francisco, California, killing an estimated 3,000 people as it topples numerous buildings. The quake was caused by a slip of the San Andreas Fault over a segment about 275 miles long, and shock waves could be felt from southern Oregon down to Los Angeles.
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